This post was originally written in 2017. It has been updated to include new information and to focus more on helping you with your email marketing, as that is my primary focus now. However, using your customer’s viewpoint to improve your marketing message works in all aspects of your marketing and I highly recommend following past me’s advice below.
There’s a reason the phrase “The customer is always right” is so often repeated. Our customer base knows what they need and why they need it. They rely on us to deliver it.
Listening to your target market helps you figure out what they want, which makes delivering exactly what they want that much easier. And it helps you position your product or service as the exact thing they want.
I learned this firsthand a few years ago when I was at Digital Marketer’s Traffic & Conversion Summit in San Diego, CA.
Put Yourself In Your Customers’ Shoes
Prior to the pandemic, the Traffic & Conversion Summit was the “who’s who” of Internet marketing. To be fair, it probably still is. I haven’t been since 2017.
Some of the attendees are hard-core marketers who have made millions selling products to other marketers. Some are small business owners, like me, who want to learn new techniques and tactics, improve lead generation and grow their businesses.
I was there with a marketing technology client that was new to me at the time. This was a 72-hour immersion for me in how to sell (and therefore market) this product.
I spent a lot of time talking to people over the weekend. But I also spent a lot of time listening.
I listened to my colleagues talk about the product, so I knew more about how it operated and how to use it. I listened to the client’s current customers talk about how the product helped them become more successful. And I listened to prospective customers asking questions about how the product works and how it can help them.
This last one was most important to me. And it should be most important to you too. These questions are going to tell you a lot about what your prospective customers think about your product now, and what they really want your product to be able to do.
Why Listening Matters When It Comes to Your Marketing Message
I was very interested in the questions our prospective customers asked. I was able to answer all of the questions regarding the benefits of our product, as well as some of the technical ones. But I regularly turned to my colleagues for the “serious” tech answers.
As I listened to these answers, I did more than just pay attention to what my colleague was saying. My marketing brain frequently went into overdrive, as I worked to position this answer into a benefit I could use in our future marketing efforts.
I also paid a lot of attention to questions that I had to answer with, “no, it doesn’t do that.” As much as it may hurt to tell a prospective customer your product or service doesn’t do what they want it to, these questions are great future product and development ideas.
My client at the time not only had several of the requested ideas in the works, but they also paid attention to these questions and incorporated some of the ideas into future iterations of their platform.
How Listening Can Help You Develop Your Marketing Message
I realize that I’m a copywriter, and positioning my clients’ products and services is part of my job. However, this is something that you can apply to your business too. And it’s a great way to develop your company’s marketing message.
When someone asks a question about your product or service, they’re looking for a solution to a problem they have.
This is true whether you’re talking to them in person or they respond to an email you sent about the product or service.
This should prompt you to ask yourself two questions:
- How can I reposition my product so that it does solve this person’s problem?
- How can I improve my product so that it is the solution this person is looking for?
Repositioning Your Product to Become the Solution
You may have a firm idea of what your product or service does for consumers. You created it. You know how it works, you know why you created it and you know what you think the end result or benefit is for your customers.
However, that doesn’t mean your customers believe the same thing.
If you’ve ever watched a child play with, well pretty much anything, you’ve seen that the human mind has many ways of approaching any given problem or situation. We tend to be very creative with how we see the world. The object the child is playing with may have a certain use. But that doesn’t mean the child is using it that way.
A classic example is the toddler who pulls a couple of pots out of a cabinet, turns them over, then starts banging on them with the nearest stick-like object. The manufacturer never intended its pots to be used as drums, but they do make a good, loud noise.
Another example is shown below where someone rigged a Slinky to stop squirrels from raiding their bird feeder.
(I don’t think the original creator of the Slinky had this in mind when he created his toy in the 1940s. But it’s a great example of a product being a solution to a problem that the creator never thought of.)
Responding to Your Potential Customers’ Questions
Sometimes, your customer will ask a question that feels like it knocks your product or service out of the running to be the “perfect solution.” However, you know it will actually solve their problem and give them the long-term benefit they’re looking for.
Your job is to figure out how to re-position your product or service so that you can show this customer the benefits you can deliver.
Listen to your customer’s question. Ask them more about what problem they’re trying to solve. If your product is the solution, find a way to respond to their question that meets them where they are.
What’s the difference between your current marketing and your customer’s question?
Sometimes, it’s language. Your potential customer may be phrasing their question in a way that makes it seem like they’re looking for a different answer, but your product or service really is the solution.
Sometimes it’s a lack of knowledge. Your potential customer may not know enough about the problem they’re trying to solve. By asking them a few questions, you can get enough information to show them that yes, your product or service is what they’re looking for.
You may also be coming up against an objection. This is where your potential customer is trying to talk themselves out of buying your product or service.
In this case, your best option is to remind them of the pain points that caused them to look for a solution to their problem in the first place. Then you can show them how your product or service addresses those pain points and how they’ll not only end their pain but reach the goal they’ve been trying to achieve.
You can also show the differences between you and your competitors, to help overcome objections and demonstrate how your product or service is the better option.
In all of these situations, use the response you give your potential customer to improve your marketing message.
Adapting Your Words to Serve Your Target Audience
Once you’ve figured out what you said to convince someone that your product or service was the best solution to their problem, think about how you can add that to your marketing.
- Share these new messages in your email marketing campaigns.
- Use the main points in the conversation as bullet points on your sales page.
- Incorporate these new marketing messages into your target audience profiles and think about how each customer avatar might react.
Building a Better Product, and a Better Customer Relationship
If your product isn’t a “perfect fit,” it’s a good idea to say, “No, it doesn’t do that. However, that’s a great idea. Let me take your contact information. That way I can let you know when I’ve added that feature to my product or service so it does meet your needs.”
Obviously, you shouldn’t do this unless you’re genuinely interested in changing your product or service, but this idea is great for customer service and product development. It will also help you grow your email list.
Once you’ve added the new feature to your product or service, use your prospective customer’s original question and need to adjust or add to your current marketing message using the methods above.
If your new feature was an idea from a specific potential customer, contact them and let them know you’ve added the feature that will help them. Ask them if it’s okay to acknowledge them in your marketing message, and thank them for the idea.
If it was something several potential (and current) customers asked for, acknowledge that in your marketing message. Make it clear that you listen to your customers and want to help them solve their problems. Thank them for helping you make a better product that serves their needs.
Incorporating Your New, Brilliant Marketing Messages Into Your Weekly Nurture Emails
Now that you’ve got these awesome new ways to convey how fantastic your product or service is, you should be sharing them with your intended audience, your email subscribers.
These people have all raised their hands and said “Yes, I’m interested in what you have to offer.” They’re literally your target audience. Which means they’re the perfect group to introduce your new marketing strategy to.
One of the best ways to do this is in your weekly nurture emails. For example, you could:
- Tell the story of the interaction with a customer who said yes after you repositioned your product or service to fit their needs.
- Show how your product or service addresses your audience’s pain points and helps them achieve their goals.
- Demonstrate why purchasing your product or service over that of your competition just makes sense.
Of course, you have to write these emails on a regular basis, so you can build an emotional connection with your subscribers and grow the relationship. Regular communication with your subscribers will increase your “know, like, and trust” factor, so yours is the company they turn to when they’re ready to make their purchase.
Which means you need to know the secret to writing great nurture emails, so you can include this new messaging.
That secret is… (drum roll)… Knowing your subscribers’ nurture email type.
Everyone has a type of nurture email they’re most likely to open, read and click on, including your subscribers.
You just need to know which one appeals to your subscribers, and you can start including these spiffy new marketing messages in this email type on a regular basis.
Find your subscribers’ nurture email type by clicking on the button below to take my free 60-second quiz.
Then you too will know your subscribers are always getting a good marketing message that appeals to them and will convince them to click on your call to action and buy.
